FACE TIME, REDUX

The CIA and FBI do it.

Charles Darwin started it.

“It” being the art of facial coding, the insights and reads taken from an individual’s expressions and body language.  Of the two modes of translation, our super spies admit to preferring the face, above all.  It’s here where our emotions truly show what we’re thinking – and feeling.

Do we as communicators and other like professionals use it?  Except for executive coaches, not so much.  We’re often so busy with words and meetings and presentations and pitches that we forget to counsel leaders on how they say what they say.  Sure, a good speechwriter does act as an adviser, helping his or her client maximize the speech/presentation’s impact.

On the other hand …

Because human beings boast more facial muscles than other species; because there are universal expressions, whether blind or sighted; and because a true smile is easy to recognize, we need to pay attention to the ways our senior-most executives communicate facially.  Besides, people are willing to pay three times as much for products and services sold by a smiling versus an angry spokesperson.

Numbers and stats aside, it’ll all about authenticity, in language and tone and style and expressions.

Anyone for lessons from a Deep Throat?

PITCHING (and we ain't talking baseball)

What does it take to win new business these days?

As outsiders (sorta) to the process now – though we participated in the thick of agency and consulting presentations for years – we wonder:  Has it gotten any better?  Any smarter?  Any more rewarding?

Talk to a new biz person about what it takes today and they’ll say:  Relationships.  Knowing the industry – and the client.  Smart differentiation.

Hmmm:  That’s the same old, same old.  With social media and big data and ROI top of mind, are the pitches any different?

We asked a few clients, since we’re impartial observers.  It’s “no difference” in no uncertain terms. 

“It’s all about them, not us.”

“The descriptions are interminable.”

“It’s words, words, words and no dreams.”

There’s more, but we’ll stop.  What’s missing, IOHO, is an emphasis on talent – and fit.  How will the agency or consultancy pick the right talent to fuel the business?  [Note we didn’t say ‘staff’ or make any promises.  We’ve all been in the room when profiles are submitted – and those individuals have one foot outta the agency.]  What’s the management philosophy for working together:  building teams, ensuring straight talk and appropriate accountabilities, driving results as a concerted whole?  Is there a process for ironing out issues and conflicts and challenges?

One rather savvy pro suggested, a few weeks ago, that HR could add a lot to the chase.  We’d second that and say:  So can communications and design.

THE SOUND OF SILENCE

Simon and Garfunkel got it right – almost 50 years ago.

Extolling the virtue of quiet, their song foreshadows what the media calls “the ultimate luxury.” 

Hospitality chains now promote tranquil Zen-like retreats. 

Amtrak’s Quiet Car has an almost cult-like status – and, we suspect, a long waiting list. 

Hotels are installing double layers of drywall, triple-pane glass windows, extra carpet padding, and programmed TVs that won’t exceed a certain volume, all to stave off the number-one complaint of guests worldwide:  Noise.

Even somewhat-unlikely product manufacturers talk about the quietest dishwasher, the ultra-silent vacuum cleaner, the noise-cancelling headphones.

And who can blame them?  Forget the individual who’s always on the speakerphone – or the constant beeps of incoming e-messages.  Noise (from the Latin word for pain) has been linked to elevated levels of stress hormones, high blood pressure, sleep loss, heart disease, and tinnitus (a/k/a ringing in the ears).

Phew:  Enough to drive a non-curmudgeon to the Fijis.

In part, we in the marketing and communications biz are to blame.  Believe it or not, the 24/7 nature of what we do can be stopped.  Why not a one-day moratorium on all voicemails and emails, presentations and unnecessary meetings?  A quiet zone where we can, literally, hear ourselves think?  Or, simply, a silent period of X time where we can focus on what matters

This conscious quiet has its roots in science:  Two hours of silence daily helped mice form hippocampus cells, the brain part concerned with memory.  And its philosophical foundation goes way back:  Nineteenth century seer Arthur Schopenhauer noted, “Noise is the most impertinent of all forms of interruption.  It is not only an interruption, but also a disruption of thought.”

“Sshh” never sounded as sweet.

THE ART OF THE ONE-PAGER

You would think that a society consumed with 140 characters and all types of texting abbreviations would have mastered succinct-ness.

Not so much.

Ever sat through PowerPoint presentations  that drone on and on and on?  Or suffered through meetings that, somehow, misplaced their agenda?   And waded through mounds of non-legal documents to try to uncover the one or two salient points needed to move the project ahead?

It is difficult, we admit, to filter all the information from our inboxes, our business conversations, our RSSs, our regular subscriptions, our podcasts and vodcasts (not to mention the drive-time radio) into one compelling message or outcome for our latest work project. 

Numbers are proof of our lives’ (and our thinking) complexity.   For instance:  Every two days more information is created than between the dawn of civilization and 2003.  

When that happens to us, we resort to diagrams and drawing.  And dumping our minds and insights on one (and only one) 8 1/2 by 11 sheet of paper.  Now, we’re not talking “drawing” in terms of Michelangelo, but rather in the use of shapes and figures similar to what we did in grade school.  In fact, anyone – even without a design bone in their pinky – can produce a one-pager.

Where to start:  Ask yourself about the end of your project, what you want to accomplish.  The results, in short.  Begin with a picture (in stick figures, if you’d like) of the “end.”  What will the company do differently?  Your team?  Other audiences?  What will the impact(s) be on all these varying groups and sectors and industries?

Those musings, we suspect, can be captured in a few bullets or phrases. 

Then, track back to the beginning and plot your progress. Like Monopoly, you’ll need to begin at “go,” what consultants call “current state.”   Select circles or arrows or any two-sided shape to show the two or three previous phases that need to occur before arriving at desired results.  Insert, again, a few bullet points for each shape.  Expect to explain only enough to have readers/viewers/listeners understand your journey.  And applaud.